Santiago Nightlife

Most of Santiago's nightlife spots are located outside the downtown area. The Bellavista district is home to many of the most buzzing bars, restaurants and nightclubs. Its main drag is Calle Pío Nono. Less discovered but perhaps more genuine is the area around Barrio Brasil, an old part of town. Meanwhile, the tidy middle-class district of Ñuñoa is gaining in popularity as a place for a night out among those disaffected by the kitsch of Bellavista. The best bars cluster around Plaza Ñuñoa.

One area now best avoided is around Avenida Suecia. Once its US-style bars used to attract huge crowds of Chileans and foreigners but it has declined into a seedy shell of its former self.

For an extensive list of Santiago's pubs and clubs, have a look at www.pubs.cl.

Santiago is experiencing something of a cultural renaissance after years in the wilderness. A good source of information for what's on in the city are the entertainment listings found in the Tiempo Libre supplement of the El Mercurio newspaper (www.emol.com) and the Cultura section of La Tercera (www.tercera.cl). It is also worth reading the Santiago Times (www.santiagotimes.cl) for an idea on what is going on.

You can pick up information on shows and performances at cultural centres, such as the Instituto Cultural de Providencia, 11 de Septiembre 1995 (tel: (02) 784 8600; www.proviarte.cl), or the Centro Cultural Estación Mapocho, Plaza de la Cultura (tel: (02) 787 0000; www.estacionmapocho.cl). Tickets are available at the individual box offices, or visitors can use ticket agency Ticketmaster (tel: (02) 690 2000; www.ticketmaster.cl). Otherwise, the music store Feria del Disco (tel: (02) 592 8500; www.feriadeldisco.cl or www.feriaticket.cl) sells tickets for many of the sporting and cultural events going on around the city.